Mail-bag catcher and deliverer.



M. NUGENT.

MAIL BAG GATGHER AND DELIVBRER.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 9.1908.

920,628. Patented May 4, 1909.

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M. NUGENT.

MAIL BAG GATCHER AND DELIVERER.

APPLICATION PILED SBPT.9,1908.

Patented May 4, 1909.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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M. NUGENTi MAIL BAG GATGHER AND DELIVERER.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 9,1908. 920,628. Patented May 4, 1909. v 3 SHEETB-SHEET 3.

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MONROE NUGEN '1, OF EAST QUOGUE, NEW YORK, ASSIG-NOR OF ONE-THIRD TO BENJAMIN l ROGERS, OF EAST QUOGUE, NEW YORK.

MAIL-BAG CATCHER AND DELIVERER.

Specification oi Letters Patent.

Patented May 4, 1909.

Application filed September 9, 1908. Serial No. 452,172.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MoNnon Noonrrr. a citizen of the United States. residing at East Quogue. Long island. in the county of Suit-- folk and State of New York, have invented. a ne Y and useful Improvement in h'liiil-Bzig Catchers and Deliverers. of which the following is a specification This invent-ion relates to a device for catching and delivering mail bags. and the object of the invention is a device of this kind by means of which mail bags can be exchanged between a moving car and a stationary post or station located adjacent the track.

The invention consists in the novel features of construction hereinafter described. pointed out in the claims and shown in the accompanying drawings. in which Figure 1 is a side elevation showing the position of the parts at the time of exchange. Fig. 2 is a plan view of my device showing the position of the parts immediately L receding the exchange of mail bags. Fig. 3 is apartial side elevation of a car showing the device carried thereby and with the parts in an inoperative position. Fig. l is a detail sectional view illustrating the normal position of the parts carried by the car. Fig. 5 is an enlarged plan view of the outer portion of one of the bag catching arms. F (l is an edge view of the arm shown in Fig. 5 a casing carried by said arm. being shown in section. Figs. 7 and 8 are detail outline views illustrating the construction of the post arranged adjacent the track. Fig. 9 is a detail view partly in section illustrating the attachment to which the mail bag is secured, a retaining cup being shown in section.

In these drawings 1 have shown a post formed in two sections 1 and 2 which are hinged together, and to the upper section is secured an angled lever 3 the handle portion of which projects horizontally from the rear side of the post when the same is in an upright position. By forcing said lever downwardly into the position'shown in Fig. 7 the upper section of the post is swung back so that the attachment for holding the mail bag can be readily placed in position. The post is locked in this position by the lever 3, which is slotted, fitting over a suitably perforated lug 5 carried by the post section 1 and a spring gripping finger 41 carried by the lever works through a suitable opening in the lever and engages the perforated lug. thus locking the lever in its downward position. After the mail bag has been placed in position the post section 2 is lifted into upright position and is then ready for exchange of mail bags with an approaching train. The hinged section 2 of the post carries upon its front. face a plate (5 from which project at right angles to the post upper and lower arms 7 and S. The upper arm 7 consists throughout the outer portion of its length of a blade notched along its opposite sides as shown at 9, the notches being semi-circular in form and the upper portion of the blade lying between said notches forms upon each side of the blade a series of arrow heads 10 each of which is provided upon its opposite sides with inwardly extending fingers 11 bent at their inner ends to form hooks, and which hooks project into the notches 9 and prevent accidental withdrawal from said notches of any article which may have entered them. The blade 7 and the fingers 11 may be formed of spring steel or any other suitable material.

At its extreme outer end the arm 7 carries a cylindrical casing 12 from the top of which depends a pin 13 about which a coil spring 14:. A plunger 15 works in the casing 12 and is suitably recessed at its inner end to receive the spring 1 1. The lower outwardly extending end portion of the plunger 15 is provided with a concaved face forming an inverted cup 16. By reducing this lower portion an annular shoulder 15 is formed on the plunger, which when in its lowest position rests upon a flange formed at the lower end of the casing 12. The lower arm 8 of the post section 2 is merely a plain smooth arm but at its upper end carries a blockhaving a recessed upper face which forms a cup 17, below and in vertical alinement with the inverted cup '16.

The attachment holding the mail bag consists of a straight rod 18 each end of which is provided with a convex'head 19 and these heads rest respectively in the cups 16 and 17 when the attachment is in place. The combined lengths of the rod 18 and heads 19 is such as when fitted into position the plunger 15 is forced upwardly and inwardly against the tension of the spring 1 1, and the pressure of this spring locks the rod 18 securely in place but as the cups 16 and 17 are comparatively shallow, any force suiiiciently strong to further compress the spring i l will draw the rod 18 and the heads 15 away from said cups. The rod 18 at acent its lower end is provided with a right angled rod 20 to the free end of which secured a stirrup 21 to which is hooked or otherwise secured a mail bag 22.

The appliance carried by the car is practically a duplicate of that carried by the post section 2 with the parts reversed. The car attachment consists of a vertically rotatably mounted shaft 23 having at its lower end a cranked portion 23 This shaft 23 carries an arm 8 which at its outer end carries a cylin der 12 The cylinder l2 corresponds in construction and use with the cylindrical casing 12 of the post attacl'iment, but in the car appa "atus it is carried by the plain arm instead of the notched blade. Below tl e arm 8 the shaft 23 is provided with an arm 7 which corresponds to the arm T and which carries at its outer end a cup 17 corresponding to the cup 17 of the arm 8. These parts normally rest just inside the car door and in order to swing them outwardly the rod 24L is pivotally connected to the angled crank portion 2. a and is also provided with racked teeth 25. These teeth are engaged by a mental. gear 26 to which is connected an operating lever 27. By throwing the said lever into downward position the rod 2% is shifted longitudinally this giving a partial rotation to the shaft and swinging the arms 7 and 8 outwardly at right angles to the car, and parallel to the arms 7 and 8 which the car is approaching. The parts are so arranged that as the car passes the sectional post the arm. 8 of the car will pass above the arm 7 of the post while the arm 7 of the car will pass between the arms 7 and The mail bag to be delivered from the car is secured to the arms 7 and 8 by means of an attachment similar to that shown in Fig. 9 already described.

It will be obvious that as the car passes the rod 18 carried by the car will. be caught by one of the notches of the blade 7 and will be disengaged from the arms T and 8 and the rod will remain in the notch 9 in which it caught, the upper head 19 being too large to permit the rod 18 slipping downwardly through said notch. In like manner the rod. 18 carried bet-ween the cups 16 and 17 will be caught by the notched blade 7 of the car from which it can be withdrawn by the operator when the parts have been returned to their normal positions.

l i l l l lVhat I claim is 2-- 1. A. device of the kind described consisting of two parallel arms, one of said arms being provided with notches, a cup carried by one 0t said arms an inverted vertically movable spring pressed cup carried by the other arm. a roch heads carried by the rod and adapted to be seated in said cups, and means for supporting a mail bag carried by said rod. the notches of one of the arms receiving and holding a similar rod carried. by a cooperating device.

2. device of the kind described comprising a fixed and a. movable mail bag holder, each oi. said holders consisting of two paraliel arms one of said arms being notched, a cup carried by one of said arms, a cylindrial casing carried by the other arm. a spring in said casing, a movable cup held in the casing and pressed upon by said spring. rods having convex heads, the heads fitting in said cups, one of said rods being carried by the stationary and one by the movable devices, and means for securing a mail bag to each of said rods.

3. A device of the hind described consisting of parallel arms. a stationary post supporting said arms, the upper arm being notched, an inverted spring pressed vertically movable cup carried by the outer end of the notched arm, a fixed cup carried by the other arm mail. bag holding means seatable in said cups, a rotatable shaft vertically arranged upon a car, means for rotating said shaft, parallel. arms carried by the shaft, the lower arm being notched and in a horizontal plane between the arms of the post, an inverted spring pressed vertically mo able cup carried by the upper arm of the car, a fixed cup Cfll'liKl by the notched arm of the car, and mail bag holding means held between said cups, the holding means of the car being caught by the notched arm of the post. and the holding means supported by the post being caught by the notched arm of the car.

4. ii. device of the kind described com.- 'sing parallel arms arranged adjacent a ck, 'iarallel arms carried by a car the 4 of the car being ofiset with respect to first mentioned arms, and mail bag holdmeans carried between the outer ends or each of arms, one arm of each set being notched to engage and receive the mail bay: no dingy; means of the other set.

MONROE NUGENT. 

